Behind the Crystal Glass
by Loveydoveyship
Summary: Short drabble set after the capture of the Female Titan, where Armin decides to investigate the matter by an interview attempt with the frozen crystal queen herself


"Can you hear me, Annie?" The blonde boy called out softly, placing a hand across the smooth crystalized glass. More like a crystalized prison, however, thought Armin-a prison for a sleeping princess.

Though, normally, Annie Leonhardt wasn't really what you'd called a 'princess.' Besides given the time period, Annie wasn't overly sweet or cheerful like any fairytale princess he'd read about. She was strong, and silent, and ready to fight. However, at least on his mind, she really was a kind person.

He still wanted to believe that. A part of him was torn, trying to convince him that he did the right thing, that she was wicked to kill all those people, for-what? Her own kind of justice? Justice for what, exactly?

But at the same time, he felt that-deep inside-she was just the kind person he'd thought her to be. Maybe she just didn't know it herself. Maybe she thought that this-all this-was her only option.

"Annie." He sighed, lowering his head. Whatever side he was on, he still felt an overwhelming amount of guilt for what he had done. It _was_ for the sake of humanity, he told himself, right? Even now he wasn't so sure.

He closed his eyes, breathing out a long sigh. After a moment, he spoke:

"You can hear me in there, can't you?"

Silence greeted him, as always. Inside her glowing capsule, Annie still looked as peaceful and pristine as ever, eyes shut as if she were only facing a gentle slumber.

"Not again, Annie." He pleaded. "Won't you speak to me at all? Won't you come out here at all?"

You'd think that after visiting her for more than a period of five weeks would discourage him. That in these times, why should he rely on a former soldier-a former traitor, to add-who's sealed herself up? Still, Armin couldn't help trying. Perhaps, if he worked hard enough, he'll get to see her again in real-life, instead of speaking to a block of crystal.

Besides, it wasn't just to get information from her. Though he had a duty as a soldier, he often would instead just sit down and have a small chat with her. Regardless if she could hear him or not, he would tell her about his dreams and his goals, the happier childhood moments, when he first saw her. For some reason, it gave him comfort in doing this, just expressing his thoughts and feelings to someone he knew wouldn't criticize or overly intimidate him. Though Annie was or had been thought of as a scary girl in the trainee corps, he knew that she would have understood him, or perhaps even been quite interested in what he had to say. As he had told himself earlier, she was a nice person overall, wasn't she?

"Annie," he said, speaking slowly and quietly. "I don't know why you did what you did. Do you yourself even know? Was all this what you you had in mind, what you wanted to see accomplished? Killing all those people...ruining all those lives...all of humanity, almost, as it seems now..."

Reaching out, he traced with his hand over the smooth crystalized glass. After a moment he immediately stopped, suddenly clenching his fist. With an angry outburst he banged his fist against the hard rock.

"Dangit!" He cursed, squeezing his eyes shut and banging his head on the rock-hard surface. "Why..why?! Why this? Why, Annie? Why did you have to- why did I-"

He stopped, leaning against the crystal dejectedly, his fist slowly uncurling.

"Why, Annie.." he mumbled weakly, turning around and sliding down to the base, of the crystal. "Why does it have to be this way? How could life be so cruel, and beautiful?" He asked, looking at the frozen teen.

Shaking his head, he looked down at the palm of his hand, where red marks from his fingers digging into his skin were slowly started to fade. Exhaling slowly, he gazed up at the sky above.

 _"We're on two opposite sides of a war, Annie, aren't we. We both made our choices. Yet, despite all that, I can't stop..I can't stop...loving..you.."_


End file.
